Mall-A-Palooza
by Svinorita
Summary: Who doesn't love shopping? Riley is excited to check out a brand new mall in San Francisco with her parents. The only problem...? The new mall is MASSIVE and Riley soon finds herself facing a whole series of stressful challenges! Can her trusty Emotions help her find her way back to her parents before a fun day out turns into a nightmare? (Requested by Orangebird124)
1. Girls Go Chopping!

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Hello everyone! As those of you who have been following my stories lately may know, I have been alternating between two stories these past few weeks: "Pieces of an Emotional Puzzle" and the Brickoli request by** _ **RoseEmbers99**_ **called "Light My Fire".**

 **Since one of these stories is nearing its conclusion soon, I have decided to start writing this new request which I was given a while ago by my good friend** _ **Orangebird124**_ **about Riley going on a little shopping trip to a brand new mall with her parents.**

 **I can promise you there will be lots of drama and excitement along the way, and although things will get pretty stressful for our young friend and her Emotions at one point, I can assure you that there will also be many laughs and family fun as well!**

 **So everyone grab your shopping bags and wallets because we are about to go chopping…I mean shopping :)**

 **Enjoy my friends :)**

 **Svinorita.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1 – Girls Go Chopping!**

It was the middle of summer and San Francisco had been experiencing some of the hottest temperatures in decades over these past few weeks. Meteorologists where forecasting another scorcher today with temperatures predicted to soar well above 90 Fahrenheit with very little respite for several more days.

However, Jill Andersen had devised a little plan to try and beat the heat, at least for today…

She decided to take her family downtown to check out the grand new (and comfortably air-conditioned) shopping mall that opened last week! And since Bill's birthday was coming up in two days' time, not only would this be a great opportunity to escape from the oppressive heat outside, but she and Riley could also pick out some birthday presents for him while they were there!

Jill already had a pretty good idea about what they should get Bill for his birthday but in order to keep the surprise a secret, she would need her daughter's help…

It was now eight o'clock in the morning, and Jill had been trying unsuccessfully to wake up Riley for the past hour. Finally after her fifth attempt at visiting her daughter's room and getting a pillow thrown in her face, Jill's perseverance paid off when Riley walked into the kitchen a short time later with a massive yawn.

She was still dressed in her pajamas and rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she looked at her mother and mumbled sleepily, "What has gotten into you this morning Mom?! It's a Saturday and I was planning on sleeping in like most people do on weekends!"

Jill had her back turned to Riley as she finished making a cup of coffee for herself. She gave a soft chuckle as she stirred her coffee and replied, "You can sleep in some other time honey! I really need your help with something today…"

Riley slowly walked up to her mother with a curious look on her face.

Jill glanced down at her and explained in a hushed voice, "Your Dad's birthday is two days away and there's still so much to be organized! I want to cook him his favorite meal and bake a surprise birthday cake for him! In addition to that, I still need to color my hair and convince him to get a much-needed haircut, and we also need to find the perfect birthday present for him!"

Jill took a deep breath and gave Riley a little smile. "So I was thinking that today you could help me make breakfast and afterwards the three of us will go and check out that brand new mall that opened downtown!"

Riley was definitely looking more alert now as Jill placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and whispered, "Your Dad can get a haircut there and afterwards I will distract him by dragging him with me to the optometrist's to buy some new frames for my glasses, while you go down to the music store."

"I heard there are some books about the band AC/DC and I want you to get him one as well as an AC/DC t-shirt or CD he doesn't have yet." Jill's smile grew broader as she leaned in closer to Riley and whispered excitedly, "And while you're at it, could you try to find a CD by the rock band _Deep Purple?_ Your father used to love that band just as much as AC/DC!"

Jill went slightly red in face as she added reflectively, "In fact, your Dad and I had our first kiss in his beat-up old Buick Skylark while we were listening to the song _"Smoke on the Water…"_

"Ew! Mom! Too much information!" Riley protested, shrugging off her mother's hand and looking away with a distasteful grimace on her face.

Jill shook her head and blinked a few times to clear up the nostalgic memories that seemed to have settled over her mind. "Oh, I'm sorry honey! I've been thinking about my youth for a few days now…"

Riley raised an eyebrow quizzically at her mother. Jill sighed deeply and said, "Anyway, as I was saying about checking out this new mall…"

Before she could finish her sentence, Riley interrupted her with unbridled enthusiasm. Her face was beaming with delight as she exclaimed, "Mom! Of course I'd love to go shopping!"

Riley's eyes flitted around the room excitedly and she started listing off all the things she wanted to buy without hardly pausing for breath:

"First of all, I need a new sports bag for my hockey gear! Then I need some new socks and sunscreen, and I'm all out of lip gloss too! I definitely need new t-shirts because my old ones are getting kind of washed-out and small! I want to check out some music too and my swim suit has a hole on the backside so that definitely needs replacing! I want to go to the bookstore and I really want to have some ice cream at some point…"

Suddenly Riley trailed off and went bright red in the face. She looked at the floor and mumbled sheepishly, "And I guess I'm going to need a bra or two…"

"Wow slow down sweetie! My head is already spinning!" Jill said laughing. "Just make sure you put together a list of all those things you need, because I already forgot most of what you said!"

She folded her arms and studied her daughter with a softly teasing smile. "The only thing that stuck in my mind was you saying that you need a bra!"

Right at that moment, Bill walked into the kitchen with a playful grin on his face.

"Jilly? Did I hear you mention that I need a bra? I don't think so!"

Bill chuckled and lifted up his shirt, showing off his stomach proudly as he declared, "I still believe I have a six-pack right here!"

"Dad! That's gross!" Riley complained with a mocking tone. But regardless, she walked openly into her father's outstretched arms and Bill gave her a big kiss on the forehead before spinning her around playfully.

Riley giggled in delight as her father gently released her and ruffled her hair lovingly.

Jill was watching the father-daughter bonding moment with a proud look on her face.

"Good morning honey!" She said as she walked up to her husband and kissed him on the cheek affectionately.

She reached out and wrapped an arm around Riley's shoulders as she explained, "I was just asking our daughter to help me with breakfast and then we can all go to that new mall that opened downtown for some retail therapy!"

The smile slowly melted from Bill's face and he stared at his wife and daughter questioningly. "Are you kidding me, Jilly?! Shopping is not therapy! It's the stuff nightmares are made of!"

Riley and Jill both looked bemused as Bill shook his head and insisted adamantly, "Shopping does nothing but boost stress levels! It makes you sweaty and cranky and above all it makes your wallet lighter!"

"Now, now honey." Jill said reassuringly. She reached out and touched Bill's arm, her brown eyes full of sympathy as she studied his face and offered gently, "You need some new shoes for work and besides, you seriously need to get a haircut!"

She ran her hand through her husband's messy brown hair and reminded him half-jokingly, "You're beginning to look a bit like a wild thing!"

"Oh?" Bill wondered as a mischievous smile crept across his face.

He turned his attention to Riley and pretended to growl like a bear before chasing her around the kitchen playfully. "GRR! That's me! Papa Grizzly Bear!"

Riley squealed and laughed as her father chased her around the kitchen table several times. "Dad! Stop it! We need to go shopping!"

She stopped and allowed her Dad to "catch" her. He wrapped her in a massive bear-hug and made growling noises whilst kissing her face affectionately.

After a few seconds, Riley slipped out of his embrace. Her blue eyes were full of eagerness as she insisted, "I need to buy so many things! Can we please go to the mall Daddy? Please?"

She batted her eyelashes at him sweetly as she spoke and Bill finally gave a big sigh of resignation. "I guess I'm beaten again! How can I possibly resist those puppy-dog eyes?"

Riley and Jill glanced at each other happily and high-fived.

"Awesome!" Riley exclaimed excitedly. Jill smiled and nodded at her husband in approval.

Bill gave a small smile in return before announcing in a serious voice, "But right now, this Grizzly is very hungry! So if you two are going to drag me shopping, you'd better make some food for me now!"

"Of course honey! We'll start on it right away!" Jill replied as she steered Riley towards the fridge encouragingly.

Bill stroked his chin before letting out a frustrated groan. "Darn! I need to shave if I'm going to be having a haircut today!"

With that, Bill turned and headed towards the bathroom reluctantly.

Jill waited until he left before saying to Riley quietly, "Okay sweetie! We are going to make an omelet for your Dad!"

She pointed towards a cabinet next to the oven and instructed, "Go get a chopping board and let's get started! Would you prefer to chop the onions or the mushrooms?"

"I'll chop the mushrooms Mom. Onions always make me cry…" Riley replied decisively.

She looked at her mother's face (particularly at her glasses), before adding helpfully, "Since you are wearing eye protection, I think you should chop the onions?"

"Ha, Ha, smart aleck…" Jill mumbled sarcastically.

And so, before the Andersen family went shopping, Riley and her Mom ended up doing some "chopping" for breakfast!

XXX

Meanwhile inside Riley's Headquarters, Disgust cracked her knuckles and stepped back from the console with a very pleased expression on her pretty, green face.

She raised her arms over her head and stretched like a cat before saying sassily, "Sorry to steal your line Joy, but **that's what I'm talking about!"**

Joy chuckled. "Did you enjoy yourself this morning Disgust?" She asked her green co-worker with a big smile.

"Oh yes! Immensely!" Disgust said as she watched Riley and her Mom preparing breakfast via the monitor with a look of unmistakable satisfaction. "We're going shopping and I know that I'm going to enjoy every minute of it!"

Disgust spread her arms wide and declared passionately, "I mean how awesome is this?! We've got a new mall to explore and apparently it's gigantic! What's not to enjoy about that?!"

Anger grunted from the sofa and quoted a famous line from _Gone with the Wind_ without looking up from his newspaper. "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn!"

Fear was standing beside Joy at the console, a cup of tea in his hand and a very anxious look on his purple face as he offered nervously, "I agree with what Bill said! Shopping malls are what nightmares are made of!"

He took a sharp intake of breath before listing off all the perils associated with busy shopping malls he could think of. "I mean there's huge crowds that could trample you to death! And escalators that can get struck halfway between levels or plummet to the ground without warning! You can get pushed and elbowed and there's the constant droning of millions of voices which makes it feel like you're inside a massive beehive! You could get mugged or trip over and break something…"

By now Fear was beginning to hyperventilate. He was shaking so violently that he didn't even realize that he had spilt most of his tea all over himself until Joy reached out and gently touched his shoulder reassuringly.

Fear gave an involuntary shriek at the contact, his gray eyes wild as he looked down at his hounds-tooth vest and noticed the tea stains on his clothes and the floor.

He gave a deep sigh. "Just thinking about all the things that could go wrong at a shopping mall is fraying my nerves and giving me a headache! I need to make myself another cup of tea and hopefully get to drink it this time…"

Fear turned and headed into the kitchen quickly. Anger watched his purple co-worker from over the top of his newspaper before tossing it aside moodily.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I have to agree with Beanpole!" Anger turned his attention to the others and grumbled sourly, "I think I'll excuse myself to my room for the duration of this shopping expedition! I might end up blowing a fuse and short-circuiting my head if I am forced to sit through this!"

Anger started to march off in the direction of his room before pausing abruptly and changing his course towards the kitchen.

"Beanpole! Make me some coffee!" He ordered bossily as he disappeared into the kitchen to join his purple co-worker.

Joy and Disgust shrugged before turning to each other with excited smiles and giving one another a high-five.

"Actually, I think exploring this exciting new mall is a wonderful idea!" Joy admitted with a cheerful laugh. "I want to see all the cool stuff Riley is going to buy and there'll be lots of music playing from all those different stores!"

"I'm going to dance till I drop!" Joy stated happily as she did a few twirls out of sheer enthusiasm.

Disgust watched her yellow co-worker's antics with a contemplative frown. "Each to themselves I suppose!" She remarked with a dismissive shrug.

Then she ran her hand over the surface of the console admirably and uttered in a dreamy voice, "But Joy? One way or another, I think you and I are going to be glued to this console throughout the whole day!"

Joy stopped dancing and nodded ecstatically in agreement. "You're absolutely right there my friend!"

She suddenly glanced in the direction of the Mind Manuals where Sadness had been reading quietly this whole time.

"Care to join us Sadness?" Joy called out cheerfully.

Sadness poked her head out from behind the shelves where the Mind Manuals were stored. "Nah Joy. I think I'll go join Anger and Fear in the kitchen." She replied sullenly.

The blue Emotion put the Mind Manual she had been reading back on the shelf. Then she shuffled away slowly, adding in a bored voice as she passed by her two co-workers at the console, "There's a leaking tap in the kitchen sink and I'd rather watch the water dripping instead of that exhausting shopping trip..."

"Okeydokey then…" Joy watched her blue companion disappear into the kitchen before turning back to the console and looping her arm around Disgust's shoulders amicably.

"Looks like it's just you and me sister! Let's help Riley make the most out of this shopping adventure and ensure that she has the time of her life!" Joy exclaimed enthusiastically.

Disgust smiled and gazed at the monitor longingly. "Oh yes! That we most certainly will do!"


	2. Shop until the Sales Assistant Drops

**Chapter 2 – Shop until the Sales Assistant Drops.**

The new shopping mall turned out to be everything advertising promised. It was a massive multi-story complex consisting of over a thousand different stores and retailers, many of which were exclusive to the new mall and found nowhere else in the country!

In short, there was plenty to stimulate the senses and keep shoppers entertained for hours on end as people got to see, smell, touch, hear and taste everything the mega mall had to offer…

The Andersen family arrived at the new mall just before 11 AM and all three were instantly blown away by the sheer scale of the place.

"Wow…" Riley and Jill exclaimed in unison as soon as they walked in through one of the building's countless glass door entrances.

Bill followed behind reluctantly. After doing a quick, military style survey of his surroundings, he placed one hand on Jill's shoulder and the other on Riley's and uttered in a small voice, "If one of us were to become separated in this place, we'd probably never find each other again! We need to stay together and avoid getting lost at all costs!"

Jill barely heard him as she took in her surroundings with wide-eyed wonder. _"Huge_ doesn't even begin to describe this place! It almost looks as if it goes on forever…"

She shook her head slowly and muttered, "I wouldn't even know where to start!"

Suddenly, Jill's eyes came to rest on a store immediately to her right with posters of glasses adorning the windows. She touched her forehead with her palm and turned to Riley and Bill with a sheepish grin on her face. "Oh silly me! Of course I do…"

Still chuckling at the irony staring her in the face, Jill pointed at the store advertising the glasses and said, "Look! The optometrist is located right next to the entrance!"

"And directly on the opposite side of that is a big homewares store..." She noted with a broad smile, a brilliant idea already starting to form in her mind.

Riley and Bill were looking at her with puzzled expressions on their faces. Jill rolled her eyes and stated with deliberate exaggeration, "You do realize that this mall probably has hundreds of different entries and exits, right?!"

Bill and Riley exchanged nervous glances with each other. Apparently, that thought hadn't crossed their minds up till now and it made them appreciate just how massive this place really was!

Jill sensed their sudden unease and she offered them both a reassuring smile.

"So the reason I'm drawing your attentions to those two stores over there, is so you remember them in case we end up getting lost or separated from each other!" She insisted with a hint of pride in her voice.

"Oh…so what you're saying is that we should try to find this particular entry with the optometrist and homeware store when we're ready to leave, right Mom?" Riley ventured hesitantly.

Jill smiled at her daughter and nodded in confirmation. "That's right sweetie! So remember the **H** for _homewares_ and the **O** for _optometrist_ and think of Santa Claus going **Ho! Ho! Ho!"**

Jill gestured towards those two stores again before declaring with simple self-satisfaction, "And voila! That's our directions sorted!"

Bill was staring at his wife admirably. He was genuinely impressed with her clever use of her immediate surroundings to help them memorize this particular reference point in case of an emergency.

With a playful chuckle, Bill threw an arm around her shoulders and kissed her on the cheek fondly, causing Jill to let out a little gasp of surprise.

"Merci Cheri! Not only are you beautiful, but you're very smart my darling!" He whispered and kissed her on the lips affectionately.

"Thank you honey!" Jill replied graciously as she kissed him back and gently pulled out of his embrace before their public display of affection attracted any more curious glances from passing shoppers.

Normally, Riley would have been embarrassed to see her parents kissing in public. But right now she was too busy admiring the endless sea of shops around her to notice that touching little moment between her Mom and Dad.

She turned in a slow circle, her eyes filled with awe as she stated, "My palms are already sweaty! I don't know where to begin!"

Suddenly, Riley felt a hand touching her shoulder lightly and she looked up to see her mother giving her a knowing wink. "Well let's take it one step at a time sweetheart. For starters, I think the three of us should get your hockey supplies sorted!"

She glanced up at Bill and smiled teasingly before adding, "Surely your ex-hockey coach over here can be helpful with that…"

"Glad to be of assistance my girls!" Bill replied with a proud smile.

He took both of them by the hands and started walking down one of the mall's endless shop-lined corridors with renewed confidence. "Now let's go find that sports store!"

XXX

Inside Riley's Headquarters, Joy and Disgust had made themselves very comfortable at the console.

Disgust closed her eyes and sighed contentedly. "I am so in my element right now Joy!"

Joy laughed and nodded enthusiastically in agreement. "I hear you Disgust! This is going to be great!"

The cheerful Emotion's eyes were darting around the room and her whole body was trembling from excitement like a kid on a sugar rush. "My senses are overstimulated already!"

"Um-hum…" Disgust acknowledged with mild amusement.

Suddenly, Disgust's eyes flew open and she groaned loudly in frustration. "But seriously! Why do we have to go to that lame sports store first?!"

She glanced at the monitor and watched with longing through Riley's point-of-view as their host and her parents walked past one clothing store after another without even pausing to check out all those fashionable clothes and accessories!

"We already passed at least twenty great shops selling clothes, shoes and bags! But no! Riley decided that she would rather go buy smelly sports socks that no one is ever going to see!" Disgust protested, her brow deeply furrowed in disapproval.

Suddenly, Joy gave a high-pitched squeal of excitement that made the green Emotion cringe unpleasantly.

"Joy! My ears are ringing!" Disgust complained as she shot her yellow co-worker a withering look.

Joy was bouncing up and down and pointing at the screen excitedly. "Oh Dis! Look! Look! Didn't Riley and Jill mention something about going to a music store this morning?! There's one on the left over there, and OH MY GOSH…!"

Joy covered her mouth with her hands as she stared at the screen with intense longing. "Disgust…I can see an accordion in the shop window…" She uttered in a small awe-struck whisper.

Disgust rolled her eyes impatiently and was about to make some half-hearted comment when all of a sudden, she felt Joy grab her arm with such vivacity that she thought her co-worker would pull it right out of its socket!

"They have to come back right?!" Joy demanded manically, shaking Disgust's arm roughly in the process.

Disgust snatched her arm out of Joy's vice-like grip and rubbed it gingerly before remarking, "I'm sure they will Joy…"

She glanced back at the screen and saw that Riley and her parents had finally arrived outside the sports store. Disgust scrunched up her face in distaste and grumbled, "I mean come on…socks?!"

XXX

After purchasing some socks and a brand new sports bag for Riley's hockey gear, the Andersen family decided to get some new work shoes for Bill next. As they made their way into a shoe store specializing in men's footwear, Riley began feeling impatient. She was raring to go and shoe shopping for her Dad was definitely **not** her idea of fun!

She knew from past experience that her Dad tended to find fault with just about every shoe he tried on. And just as she'd expected, today was going to be no exception…

After spending the best part of forty-five minutes in the shoe store, Bill repeatedly found something wrong with every shoe that Riley and her mother picked out for him. He was unbelievably fussy when it came to his feet and anything that went on them. So he was prepared to take his precious time and try on every single shoe in the store and Riley couldn't stand it anymore!

"Come on Dad!" She whined impatiently. "Those last ones you tried looked good enough!"

Riley waved her arms in exasperation. "If you scrutinize every single pair of shoes in this store, we're going to grow old in here!"

Bill was trying on his thirtieth pair of shoes. After pulling them on, he stood up and took two steps before shaking his head in disapproval and taking them off again.

"Maybe you girls should go and do some shopping of your own while I finish up in here?" Bill suggested as he reached for the next pair of shoes and inspected them critically.

"I'll meet you in front of this shop when I'm done." He said absently and watched the sales assistant, a young dark-haired man in his late twenties bringing out yet another box of shoes for him to try on.

Riley and Jill exchanged a quick look and hurried out of the shoe store before Bill changed his mind and asked them to stay.

"Wow sweetie! That was a good save!" Jill whispered to her daughter as soon as they were out of Bill's earshot. "Your father was really beginning to get on my nerves…"

Riley snorted in agreement. "Yeah, he always takes _forever_ when it comes to buying shoes!"

Jill rolled her eyes and nodded. Then her face lit up as she recalled a particular store they passed by earlier and she tugged at Riley's arm excitedly. "Hey! I saw a swimwear store on our way here. How about we go and buy you that new swimsuit you wanted next?"

"Oh cool! Let's do that Mom!" Riley replied eagerly.

They started walking in the direction Jill said she saw the swimwear store. Along the way, Jill leaned in close to her daughter and whispered in her ear in a softly teasing voice, "And after that, we can get you that most important item that every young lady needs…a bra!"

"Mom!" Riley groaned as her cheeks turned bright red from embarrassment. But deep down, she couldn't deny that she was excited to try on her very first bra…

XXX

Meanwhile in Headquarters, Sadness had decided to join Disgust and Joy at the console.

"That shoe store was boring…" The blue Emotion said with a big yawn.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Joy admitted with a shrug.

Then she narrowed her eye at Sadness, her voice lightly reprimanding as she added, "But you didn't have to press that button and make Riley complain about her Dad taking too long Sadness!"

"I'm sorry…" Sadness mumbled in a tired-sounding voice and averted her eyes to the floor guiltily.

The three female Emotions were so engrossed with watching the monitor, that none of them noticed Fear walking up behind them until he spoke up suddenly, causing all three to utter involuntary cries of surprise.

"I think it's a good thing she pressed that button! At least now Bill can shop in peace because finding the right pair of shoes is very important!" Fear announced matter-of-factly.

"You could seriously damage your feet by wearing shoes that don't fit properly and offer the right amount of support!" Even before he finished speaking, Fear couldn't help glancing down at his own shoes anxiously.

"Speaking of which, my own shoes are starting to get a little worn out..." He noted with a nervous expression spreading across his purple face.

Before any of the others could respond, Anger's irritated voice came thundering from the kitchen doorway. "Oh please! Does anyone have any earmuffs I can borrow for the remainder of this lame shopping trip?!"

XXX

Nearly an hour after leaving Bill at the shoe store to "shop in peace" as Fear had put it, Riley and her mother had both picked out some swimsuits that they liked. Riley even stocked up on some lip gloss in addition to _two_ bras (one was a sports bra and the other just a normal everyday kind.)

Chatting about their purchases happily, mother and daughter made their way back to the front of the shoe store to meet Bill. But upon their arrival, they received quite a surprise to find that he was nowhere in sight!

"That's strange? Your father said he would wait for us right here as soon as he was done buying his shoes…" Jill ventured whilst looking around listlessly, her brow creased with worry.

She was just about to go and ask one of the shop assistants inside the shoe store if they knew where her husband was. But as soon as she entered the shop, she got her answer without even needing to utter a word…

There was Bill, surrounded by a mountain of shoe boxes and talking to the same young sales assistant they met earlier, and he was no longer smiling and cheerful. In fact, the young man now looked very red-faced and decidedly out-of-breath for some reason.

Unfortunately, it didn't take long for Jill to figure out just what the cause of his distress was; Bill! Incredibly, he was still trying on shoes almost an hour after they'd left him! That poor young sales assistant would probably need counselling after this harrowing experience with a customer like Bill…

"For crying out loud!" Jill exclaimed as she looked at Riley with an expression of disbelief. "That man sends me up the wall with his antics sometimes!"

Riley followed her mother into the store and gasped in amazement as she saw her Dad still trying on shoes after all this time.

Jill shook her head and sighed. "Come on sweetie…let's rescue that poor sales assistant from your father. Look how red he is! The poor guy looks like he's going to have a heart attack any minute!"

Jill put her hand on Riley's shoulder and they walked up to Bill with forced smiles on their faces as he glanced up and greeted them cheerfully.

"Oh hey girls! You're back already?" Bill asked with a slightly puzzled look on his face. "I thought you would have taken a bit longer with your shopping…"

Jill cleared her throat and pointed to a shoe box containing a pair of casual, but nice-looking black leather shoes.

"Honey, I think this first pair you tried on were actually the best." Jill stated with an encouraging smile.

Bill regarded the shoe box she was pointing to with a thoughtful expression.

"You know, I think you might be right Jilly..." He stroked his chin with one hand and after a few seconds, he finally nodded in agreement.

"Yeah! I'll take those!" Bill told the sales assistant with a pleased smile.

The young man let out a deep sigh and looked extremely relieved. "Certainly sir…"

After paying for the shoes, Riley and her parents walked out of the store and discussed what they should do next. By now they had quite a few shopping bags between them and Jill suggested that they should take them all to the car before resuming with their shopping. Then she would go to the optometrist to pick out some new frames for her glasses while Bill got his haircut at the barber.

"That will give Riley some time to shop on her own and buy those t-shirts she wanted." Jill offered with a small smile.

"I don't know Jilly…is it really such a good idea to let Riley go off on her own?" Bill asked worriedly. "I mean this place is so big! What if she gets lost?"

Jill patted his arm reassuringly and said, "It's okay honey. She'll be fine! Remember what I said about the entry with the homewares store and optometrist nearby…"

"Of course Mom! **H** for _homewares_ and **O** for _optometrist_ and think of Santa Claus going **Ho! Ho! Ho!** That way I'll remember where to find you when I'm done!" Riley recited cheerfully.

Jill squeezed her husband's hand gently and assured him that everything would be fine. Bill was still looking a little apprehensive about letting Riley go and explore on her own, but he finally nodded and agreed reluctantly.

"Okay then...but let's get all these bags to the car first." Bill said. He picked up some of the shopping bags and started walking in the direction of the carpark.

Jill waited until he had gone a few paces ahead of them before she winked at Riley and mouthed the words "Dad's present…" to her silently.

Riley smiled and gave her the thumbs up sign. Then she and Jill collected their shopping bags and followed Bill outside to take their purchases to the car together.

XXX

When they returned to the mall a short time later, Bill put his hand on Riley's shoulder and asked her hesitantly, "Are you sure you'll be okay shopping on your own sweetheart?"

Riley nodded and smiled at him reassuringly. "Sure Dad! I've got my cell phone with me and I promise I won't take too long."

She took her phone out of her pocket and waved it in front of Bill's face. "When I'm done, I'll give you a call and we'll meet up in front of the _Ho...Ho…Ho…_ entrance!"

"Okay sweetie! Have fun!" Jill called out chirpily. She grabbed Bill by the arm and started dragging him towards the barber to have his haircut.

Riley waited until her parents were out of sight. Then she fist pumped the air in excitement and hurried off in search of that music store they had passed by on their way to the sports shop earlier.

In Headquarters, Joy and Disgust were watching the monitor with barely contained exhilaration. The two Emotions cheered in delight and gave each other a high-five as Riley made her way through the crowds of shoppers happily.

"Let's do some shopping!" They exclaimed in unison.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **It looks like things are about to get very exciting for Riley and at least some of her Emotions! Sure Joy and Disgust may be the only ones who are really thrilled about this shopping adventure, but I can assure you that all five Emotions will be required at the console soon enough!**

 **Riley is about to discover that not everything about the mall is fun and exciting…sometimes it can be stressful and even scary!**

 **I hope you are all enjoying the story so far and I would like to thank** _ **Orangebird124, Tripledent**_ **and** _ **jloew1993**_ **for the reviews to the first chapter :)**

 **Also thank you to everyone who has been reading this story so far and I hope you all decide to stick around to see what happens next :)**

 **Svinorita.**


	3. Should've Known Better

**Chapter 3 – Should've Known Better.**

Riley's hands were sweaty and her heart was beating fast as she walked through the massive mall on her own. Although she was feeling a little nervous about the prospect of exploring the mall by herself, she was also very excited. Shopping on her own made her feel so grown-up and independent! She couldn't wait to start checking out all those amazing stores and buy the rest of the items she planned!

But first things first…

Riley decided that before she did anything else, she would go to the music store and get her Dad's birthday present sorted out. So she set out in search of the music store that she recalled passing on her way to the sports shop earlier, and it wasn't long before she found it.

Riley felt a surge of excitement as she stepped inside the music shop, but she was also very surprised by how busy it was! There were hordes of music fans browsing the shelves for their favorite artists while loud rock music played over the shop's speakers.

After a moment of hesitation, Riley collected her thoughts and started looking around the store. It took her a while to find the rock section and when she did, she was blown away by how many different AC/DC CDs there were to choose from!

Riley's brow furrowed in concentration as she tried to recall which albums she thought her Dad already owned. But since she'd never paid very close attention to Bill's AC/DC collection, she wasn't one hundred percent sure…

In the end, Riley gave a deep sigh and shrugged as she picked one of many CDs entitled _The Greatest Hits of AC/DC._ She was a bit confused that there were so many albums all claiming to be the band's Greatest Hits (shouldn't there be just one?) So she took her best guess and selected the one that featured most of the AC/DC songs she thought sounded familiar to her.

 _I'll just have to hope that Dad doesn't have this one yet…_ Riley told herself as she examined the song list on the back of the CD uncertainly.

She turned and was about to go to the front counter to pay for the CD, when she remembered her Mom had also asked her to look for the band _Deep Purple_ while she was here. Although she was unfamiliar with the band, Riley guessed that _Deep Purple_ sounded like a rock band as well. So she quickly scanned the shelves and located another "Greatest Hits" album; this time for _Deep Purple._

By now Riley was beginning to feel a bit anxious. The loud music blaring over the store's speakers and the crowd of people inside the shop were all making her feel so nervous, that she just wanted to finish picking out her Dad's present and leave this noisy store as soon as possible...

Clutching the two CDs to her chest, Riley hurried over to the shelves displaying various books and music paraphernalia and began looking for a book about AC/DC.

Just like with the CDs, there were quite a few books about AC/DC to choose from and Riley wasn't sure which one would appeal to her Dad the most. Eventually, she picked one that was labelled as a best-seller called, **"AC/DC: Let There be Rock!"**

Then she turned her attention to the music paraphernalia and found an AC/DC t-shirt that she thought looked cool and hoped her Dad would like. It was black with the band's name written across the top in bold red letters. Underneath this was a picture of a desert highway with flames at the end and a car driving towards them. Next to the road was a sign that read: " _Highway to Hell."_

Riley took the shirt and paid for it at the front counter along with the AC/DC book and two CDs. She didn't really feel like looking at some CDs for herself at the moment. The atmosphere inside the store was too hectic and she felt like she had to get out of there immediately!

The guy behind the counter looked at the items Riley had selected with a raised eyebrow, but he didn't say anything as she handed him the money and hurried out of the store with her Dad's present inside a dark-colored shopping bag.

As soon as Riley was out of that store, she gave a huge sigh of relief.

 _Okay! That's done! Boy am I glad to be out of there…_ Riley thought to herself as she looked around the mall and tried to decide where she should go next.

XXX

Joy let out a bloodcurdling "Nooooo!"

She turned to Fear beside her and slapped his fingers away from the console in frustration. "Fear! You ruined my day!"

Fear yelped in alarm. He cradled the hand Joy had slapped and rubbed his bruised fingers gingerly as he stared at her in shock.

Joy waved her arms in exasperation and glared at her purple co-worker disapprovingly. "Why did you have to press so many buttons?! You made Riley feel all nervous and panicky for no reason!"

"B-but Joy…!" Fear stammered desperately. He truly believed that Riley was in danger in that crowded music store with all those strangers and loud music! He was just trying to protect their host and he couldn't understand why Joy was getting mad at him…

All that yelling had piqued Anger's interest and the red Emotion waddled out of the kitchen to see what all the fuss was about.

"Hey! Hey! Timeout!" Anger grumbled. He stopped in front of the other two Emotions and regarded them with a contemplative frown.

Finally he pointed at Fear and mumbled gruffly, "I overheard your little quarrel and I'm sorry Joy, but I have to agree with Beanpole on this occasion!"

Fear gasped in surprise and stared at Anger in disbelief.

Anger shrugged and added reflectively, "He probably just wanted to get Riley out of that store because that place sure looked like a _'highway to hell'_ if you ask me!"

"Yeah but, but…" Joy's shoulders slumped in defeat and she gave a deep sigh.

"I didn't get to see my accordion…" She said miserably. "I know Riley wasn't going to buy it, but I was hoping that I would at least get to see it up close through her eyes!"

Joy sighed again. "It was so new and shiny and I wanted to see what model it was…" She whispered more to herself than anyone else.

Sadness yawned loudly from where she was sitting on the sofa. "Maybe next time Joy…"

The blue Emotion nodded towards Fear and offered in a gloomy voice, "You saw how busy that store was? There were so many people around and Riley didn't have her parents with her…"

Joy growled in frustration and turned away from the others with her fists clenched at her sides. "I don't expect any of you to understand! None of you have a musical bone in your bodies and you don't get my passion for music!"

The other Emotions exchanged nervous looks. Joy refused to acknowledge any of them, her voice sounding uncharacteristically edgy as she stated, "Right now, this Joy is _not_ a happy Emotion!"

XXX

Riley spent the next half hour exploring some clothing stores. But none of them really caught her eye and she was starting to get discouraged. It turns out the majority of them were either for young kids or people around her Mom's age.

Without consciously realizing it, Riley had gradually walked deeper and deeper into the mall. After a while, she began thinking that she should turn back before she ended up getting lost...

All of a sudden, she heard a saleslady making an announcement over a loudspeaker and she stopped in her tracks.

"Ladies and gentlemen! I'd like to invite you all to the grand opening of our new beauty and cosmetics store located on the first floor! We have all your beauty and cosmetics needs right here so come and check it out! Come see our amazing range of perfumes, lotions, makeup, hair products, soaps and sunscreens!"

The saleslady's voice was steadily rising in excitement as she announced cheerfully, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have an exclusive offer just for today! We will be giving away free gift bags containing a selection of our best products to EVERYONE who decides to check out our store today, so don't miss out!"

Riley smiled and started following the throngs of people heading towards the new beauty shop. She remembered that she needed to get some sunscreen and she decided to check out the new store out of curiosity.

But as soon as she arrived at the beauty store, Riley realized that she had made a **big** mistake…

A massive crowd had already gathered outside the store and the next thing she knew, Riley found herself getting pushed and shoved as more and more people arrived by the second! Even if Riley wanted to leave, she couldn't because the crowd was pushing her along as everyone hurried to get their free gift bags.

Riley clutched the shopping bag containing her Dad's birthday present tightly to her chest. She was starting to panic as people pushed and bumped into her from all directions and no matter how hard she tried, she could not break out of the surging crowd.

Riley looked around desperately, her heart pounding with fright as a single thought flashed through her mind.

 _I need to get out of here and find my Mom and Dad!_

XXX

"Fear! What has gotten into you today?!" Disgust demanded shrilly.

Fear cringed at the harshness of Disgust's voice and shrank back from the console instinctively. His axon was curled tightly in a downwards-pointing spiral and he looked like a deer in the headlights as he stared at the green Emotion apprehensively.

Disgust put her hands on her hips and glared at her purple co-worker icily. "You've spoiled this shopping experience first for Joy, and now me!"

"But can't you see what's happening out there?!" Fear pointed at the monitor in exasperation.

He met Disgust's gaze defiantly and his voice suddenly took on a defensive edge. "All those people were pushing and shoving Riley like a herd of stampeding buffalos!"

"I am not letting our girl get crushed! Over my dead body…" Fear stated boldly. He ignored the perplexed look Disgust gave him as he ran back to the console and resumed pressing buttons frantically.

"It's amazing what the word _'free gift'_ does to people." Sadness whispered as she watched the madness unfolding on the monitor depressingly. "It causes them to start acting very irrationally…"

Disgust was staring at the monitor with a growing sense of unease as she watched Riley getting knocked and pushed around roughly by the frenzied crowd of people.

"I think you're right about that Sadness…" Disgust pulled a face and shook her head in disapproval when she saw a very old woman shove her way past Riley and snatch up her free gift bag greedily.

"Can you believe that old crone?! She looks almost 90! No amount of cosmetics in the world are going to help hide her wrinkles!" Disgust remarked sarcastically.

Anger had been watching the scene in bemused silence from the back of the room. Now he stomped up to the console with a massive frown plastered over his face.

He gestured at the screen and commented moodily, "And some of those men are probably going to give those _'free gift bags'_ to their girlfriends or wives later and pretend that they had to spend a small fortune on it!"

Disgust nodded in agreement. "I just hope they put some sunscreen in those bags after everything Riley had to go through!" She said with a contemplative frown.

She glanced briefly at Fear, whose hands were still flying over the controls frantically and sighed in resignation. "Maybe we _should_ get Riley out of here as soon as possible…"

"Besides, I can always get all my beauty products on Fashion Island!" Disgust added smugly.

XXX

Riley finally found a gap and forced her way out of the crowd. By the time she had escaped the mass of bodies and shopping bags that had carried her along like a tidal wave, she felt on the verge of tears. She was hyperventilating and all she wanted to do was find the exit and get back to her Mom and Dad.

Riley glanced around like a terrified gazelle and noticed an exit up ahead, so she started running towards it without paying attention to the stores in the immediate vicinity.

As soon as she made it outside to the carpark, she pulled her cellphone out of her pocket and tried turning it on with trembling fingers. But to her utter dismay, the screen remained black no matter how hard she tapped on it and Riley began crying from desperation.

"Oh no! The battery is flat and I forgot to charge it last night!" Riley gulped back her tears and stared at the phone despairingly. "What am I going to do…?"

Just then, she heard a male voice coming from her left. "Hi there sweet thing! You look lost…perhaps my buddies and I can be of some assistance?"

Riley whirled in the direction of the voice, her heart pounding with fright and her eyes wide with panic. She saw a group of boys that appeared to be 18 or 19 years of age standing beside the glass doors leading into the mall.

Riley noted that they all looked a bit rough around the edges…

Most of them had facial piercings and tattoos all over their arms and some of the older ones were smoking cigarettes. They were eying Riley like a pack of wolves and taunting her with catcalls and inappropriate gestures.

Riley's legs almost buckled under her as she felt a wave of fear wash over her. Her tears were flowing freely and without realizing that she had dropped the bag containing her Dad's present, she turned and ran back into the mall as fast as she could. She was on the verge of hysteria and she could hear the laughs of those teenage thugs following her and taunting her cruelly as she ran.

As soon as she reentered the mall, Riley looked around and realized there was no optometrist or homewares store anywhere near this particular entrance. That's when she knew without a doubt that she was hopelessly lost.

Riley pressed her back against a wall and crumpled to the floor. She buried her face into her knees and cried helplessly.

"What am I going to do now?!" She sobbed desolately.

 _I should've known better! Why didn't I check my phone before we left home?!_ She thought to herself with a frustrated moan.

 _Now my phone's not working and I have no way of contacting my parents so I can tell them to come and find me…_

XXX

Headquarters was in a state of pandemonium! Sadness was huddled in a corner and crying hysterically. Fear had worked himself into a frenzied state of panic while Joy was trying her best to calm him down and getting herself worked up in the process.

"Breathe Fear! Breathe! Don't you pass out on us now!" Joy screamed into her purple co-worker's face desperately.

Disgust was pacing in front of the monitor and pulling at her hair as she mumbled in a shell-shocked voice, "What are we going to do?! I'm never letting Riley set foot inside a mall again…"

"EMOTIONS REGROUP!" Anger thundered over the noise and slammed his fist down on the console forcefully.

Instantly the room went quiet as everyone stopped what they were doing and turned their attentions to Anger nervously.

"Just calm down all of you!" Anger shouted, the top of his head beginning to glow as he threatened to burst into flames at any second.

He took a deep breath and reminded them with as much patience as he could muster, "Clear your heads and stay focused! We have a job to do! We need to help our girl get back to her parents…"

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **Now folks, those of you who have been following my stories may know that I sometimes incorporate some of my personal experiences into my writing. This chapter also contained some content that was inspired by one of my real-life experiences and I'd like to share that snippet from my past with you now:**

 **Back when our shopping mall was pretty new, it had three different supermarkets and my parents and I always shopped in the one located on the first floor. But one day for whatever reason, we decided to check out the one located on the second floor instead.**

 **So while my Mom and I were doing the grocery shopping in this unfamiliar supermarket, my Dad decided to wait for us in the car because he always hated shopping. After about an hour, we had a full trolley of groceries and Mom and I went back to the carpark (which was getting dark by now) and we couldn't find our car in the busy parking lot!**

 **We spent at least 45 minutes (if not more) pushing that full shopping trolley all over that carpark and trying to locate our car. Now I should point out that I was about seven years old at the time and I remember yelling "Dad!" while my Mom yelled "Joe!" in the hope that he would hear us and come** _ **rescue**_ **us!**

 **I'm sure we attracted quite a few curious looks from people sitting in their cars, but there was no knight in a shining Mazda 626 to be seen! By this point, it was really getting dark and I know what some of you might be thinking…why didn't we just call him and tell him where we were by cellphone?**

 **Well this was back in the day before most people had cellphones (We had one the size of a brick in the car and it wasn't the kind of thing you'd like to carry around everywhere!)**

 **By this point, my Mom and I were probably feeling a combination of "Nervous Tears" and "TearBrick". By that, I mean that we were both feeling panicky and teary before getting angry! (I'm pretty sure my Dad earned a new title that day: Stupid Lazy Man?)**

 **I remember my Mom mumbling something along the lines of: "If he wants to eat, he should go shopping for himself!"**

 **That's when I had a brainwave…**

 **I asked my Mom about which shops were near the entrance when we entered the mall and surely enough, she realized that we went out on the wrong exit! So you see guys? It really CAN happen just like it did to Riley in this chapter and that's why you should always be aware of your surroundings in a new environment!**

 **Anyway when we finally did find our car, my Dad looked on the verge of having a heart attack and a few not-so-soft words were exchanged between my parents afterwards…**

 **But all is well that ends well! Maybe this can help you understand how Riley and her parents must be feeling right now because believe me, I know EXACTLY how they feel!**

 **Svinorita.**


	4. Hang On, Help Is On Its Way!

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

 **We have reached the end of this shopping expedition and I'd like to thank everyone who has been reading this story for coming on this journey with me! I hope you all enjoyed the highs and lows of Riley's shopping experience and as always, I'd like to thank all the reviewers with a short personal note here at the final chapter:**

 _ **Orangebird124**_ **– Thank you for sharing another of your creative story requests with me! I tried to cover all the points you suggested in your request and I hope you enjoyed what I managed to put together for you my friend :)**

 _ **Tripledent**_ **– Thank you so much for the encouraging reviews as always my friend! I am truly impressed with how you seem to be able to predict the outcome of upcoming chapters as though you can read my mind :)**

 _ **jloew1993**_ **– Thank you for your supportive reviews throughout the story my friend! I'm glad you enjoyed the story and I really appreciated the time you took to leave feedback on my chapters :)**

 **In addition to the reviewers, I'd also like to give a shout out to** _ **AirlineFlyer**_ **for choosing to add this story to your follows list :)**

 **And finally, I want to say thank you to all the silent readers around the world for your support :)**

 **Now let's see how Riley gets reunited with her very worried parents…**

 **Svinorita.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4 – Hang On, Help Is On Its Way!**

After several minutes, Riley finally stopped crying. She lifted her head from her knees slowly and tried to take stock of her situation. Rubbing her eyes with one hand, she got to her feet and started surveying her surroundings carefully.

 _Come on! Think Riley, think…_ she told herself mentally, her eyes searching the stores in her immediate vicinity in the hopes of finding her bearings.

Surely enough, it didn't take Riley long to realize that she had fled to the wrong exit in her panic to find her parents. There was no optometrist or homewares store in sight and she must be on the other side of the mall somewhere…

" _Okay, I'm at the wrong exit. My cellphone doesn't work and I'm lost…"_

Riley took a deep breath and tried to push down the fresh wave of fear and sorrow that was threatening to come over her.

She waited a few minutes until she started to feel a little calmer before trying to decide what her next course of action should be.

Furrowing her brow in concentration, Riley desperately tried to recall whether she saw any payphones on her way here…

XXX

Joy patted Anger on the shoulder as she watched the monitor with a sense of relief. "Good work Anger! You helped Riley collect herself and stop crying!"

The yellow Emotion switched her focus to Sadness and beamed at her gratefully. "And Sadness! That was a great idea to try to get Riley to remember whether we saw any payphones on our first pass through this section of the mall!"

"Yeah, but what do we do now…?" Fear asked nervously from beside Joy. His eyes were wide with panic and he was chewing the tips of his fingers as he stared at the screen apprehensively.

Sadness sighed miserably and mumbled, "Now we look through Riley's eyes and try to find some responsible adults."

The blue Emotion sniffled and reached forward, placing her hand on a lever as she prepared to take charge again.

"Then we need to make her cry again…" She decided sadly.

Just then as Sadness watched the monitor, she noticed an old couple approaching Riley. She felt her heart skip a beat as she recognized them carrying what appeared to be Riley's misplaced shopping bag…

 _Bill's birthday present!_

For the briefest of moments, a smile flashed across Sadness' face. She leaned forward and pushed the lever, turning the console a shade of melancholy blue.

 _It's time to cry…_ Sadness thought as a few tears escaped from her own eyes.

Riley began to sniffle and tears rolled down her cheeks when she saw the old couple heading towards her. The old lady looked straight at Riley and nudged her husband with her arm as they walked up to her, their elderly faces full of concern.

"Oh poor dear! Are you okay honey?" The old lady asked Riley gently as they came to a stop in front of her.

Riley wiped her eyes with her sleeve and looked up at the old couple cautiously.

The old lady was smiling at her kindly. "We saw you running away from those nasty boys outside."

She nodded towards her husband and chuckled softly before adding, "Don't you worry dear! My husband gave them a piece of his mind and saw to it that they won't be bothering anyone around here anytime soon!"

The old lady noticed Riley's stunned expression and smiled at her reassuringly. She offered her the shopping bag. "Here you go honey. I think this belongs to you? You accidentally forgot it outside…"

Riley glanced at the shopping bag and smiled gratefully. She hadn't even realized up till now that she had forgotten her Dad's present and she felt intensely relieved that these kind old people had found it and returned it to her.

She took the bag thankfully and checked to make sure that her Dad's present wasn't damaged. Then her expression turned sorrowful again and she glanced up at the old couple with pleading eyes.

"Can you please help me find my parents? I'm lost…" Riley took a shuddering breath. A fresh wave of panic surged through her as she desperately tried to explain what had happened to the elderly husband and wife.

"There were so many people at that beauty store and I got caught up in the crowd! When I finally managed to break free, I panicked and lost my sense of direction! Now I don't how to get back to my parents…"

Riley took her cellphone out of her pocket and showed it to the old woman, her voice rising in pitch as she babbled with increasing desperation. "My cellphone doesn't work because I forgot to charge it last night! I was so excited to go shopping on my own but everything has turned into one big disaster!"

"Now I just want to find my parents and get out of here…" Riley broke down in tears and hid her face with her arm as she began to cry uncontrollably.

The old lady was watching her sympathetically. She reached out with one hand and patted Riley on the shoulder.

Her voice sounded very soothing as she crooned gently, "Okay, calm down dear. My husband and I can take you to the information desk and get directions to the place where you last saw your parents. Then we can walk with you until you find your parents if you'd like?"

She shrugged and glanced back at her husband regrettably. "We'd lend you our cellphone if we had it on us, but unfortunately our generation don't carry cellphones everywhere…"

XXX

Anger cheered and pumped his fist in victory. "Now we're getting somewhere!"

Disgust nodded in agreement. She turned to Sadness and gave her a relieved smile. "I've gotta say, that was a smart move getting Riley to cry in front of those old people Sadness."

"Yeah, yeah… let's just get Riley reunited with her parents as soon as possible!" Fear stammered nervously.

"Don't worry Fear. With these helpful old people, Riley will be back with her parents in no time…" Sadness tried to reassure her purple co-worker tearfully.

"Whoa everyone! Timeout!" Joy shouted suddenly.

She jumped in front of the monitor and blocked their view, her expression strangely serious. "I think we should talk about this…"

The other four Emotions stared at their leader in confusion.

Joy waved her arms in exasperation and prompted, "Should we really just let these people deliver Riley to her parents like a parcel and make her feel like an insecure little kid…"

"Not to mention cause her to develop a morbid fear of shopping for life…" Disgust interrupted sassily.

The green Emotion crossed her arms and glared at Joy defiantly.

Joy rolled her eyes impatiently and nodded briskly.

Then she pointed at the screen and emphasized in a lecturing voice, _"Or_ should we let her get directions from the information desk and then allow her to find her own way back?"

This suggestion was met with a chorus of grumbling and worried whispering. The other Emotions exchanged doubtful looks before they all turned their attentions back to Joy questioningly.

Joy sighed and tried to reassure them with as much positivity as she could. "Come on guys! Have you forgotten how happy Riley was to go shopping on her own?"

Fear cleared his throat and stepped up to the console anxiously. "I think we should let these people take Riley to her parents and get them reunited as soon as possible!"

Sadness was silent for a few moments as she pondered over Joy's suggestion. Finally she sighed and offered hesitantly, "Well maybe Joy has a good point. If we don't let Riley do this on her own, then she might feel panicky when she has to go to the mall in the future?"

Sadness glanced at Fear and added thoughtfully, "She's a smart girl and with a little help from us, I believe she can find her own way back."

Fear's shoulders slumped in defeat and he shook his head miserably. "I don't think I can watch this…"

"Well maybe you shouldn't then!" Disgust protested irritably.

Fear cringed and backed away from the controls instinctively as Disgust glared at him fiercely.

Disgust put her hands on her hips. "Maybe you need to step aside, take a deep breath and collect yourself so the rest of us can concentrate here!" She insisted impatiently.

Fear gave Joy a pleading look as he shrank further away from the console. The yellow Emotion shrugged at him apologetically, before turning back to address the others with determination.

"Okeydokey! That's settled then! Let's get cracking team!"

XXX

Just like they promised, the kind old couple took Riley to the information desk. Riley explained her predicament to the very helpful and friendly lady working at the desk, who agreed to make an announcement over her speakers so Riley's parents could come and find her.

"Oh please don't do that!" Riley begged the concierge worker, her eyes wide with panic. "That would probably make my parents sick with worry!"

The concierge looked at Riley apologetically, as though she didn't know what else she could do to help if Riley didn't want her to make an announcement.

Riley looked down at her feet uncertainly. "Maybe if you could just give me directions to the optometrist near the first floor entrance, I could find my way to _them_ instead?" She suggested in a small whisper.

The old lady who had guided her here exchanged a worried look with her husband at this request.

"Are you sure you want to do that dear?" The elderly woman asked Riley gently as she reached out and touched her shoulder.

Her husband smiled at her encouragingly. "We're more than happy to take you to your parents ourselves." He offered helpfully.

Riley gave them both a grateful smile. Then she shook her head and insisted, "I appreciate your kindness, but I really feel like I need to do this on my own."

She blushed a little and looked away before adding quietly, "Otherwise my parents might be scared to let me out of their sights ever again…"

The old lady nodded in understanding and Riley smiled appreciatively. Then she gave both her and her husband a thankful hug.

"I want to thank you both so much for helping me and also for returning my lost bag to me!" Riley said graciously.

Then she turned back to the concierge worker and told her that she was ready to receive her directions.

The lady behind the desk gave her a friendly smile as she rummaged in her handbag and brought out a cellphone.

She held the phone out to Riley and explained, "Since you don't want me to make an announcement over the speakers, I'll let you borrow my cell so you can call your parents and let them know that you're on your way to meet them."

Riley let out a relieved sigh. She thanked the concierge and accepted the phone as the lady insisted kindly, "I'll give you directions to the optometrist now and if you can't find your way, you're more than welcome to come back here and wait for your parents to collect you."

"Thank you." Riley replied softly. She started dialing her Mom's number into the concierge's cellphone with trembling fingers.

"It's so kind of you to let me use your cell!" Riley turned her back to the information desk and held the phone to her ear nervously as she waited for her Mom or Dad to answer…

When Riley finally got her parents on the phone, they sounded frantic.

"Riley! Where are you and what is this number you're calling from?!" Bill demanded worriedly.

Before Riley could answer, she heard her mother's hysterical voice in the background. "Is she alright?! Oh she's never going shopping on her own again!"

Riley rolled her eyes and sighed in exasperation. "Mom! Dad! Calm down! I'm okay!"

She took a deep breath and started explaining as calmly as she could, "I got a little bit lost and I couldn't call you earlier because I forgot to charge my cellphone last night! This kind lady working at the information desk let me borrow hers and she's going to give me directions to the _'Ho, Ho, Ho,'_ entrance so stay put and I'll meet you there shortly!"

Riley turned off the cell before her parents could do any more overreacting. Then she handed the phone back to the concierge and thanked her and the elderly couple again before setting off with a set of handwritten directions that she hoped would lead her back to her parents.

XXX

Riley was concentrating so hard on finding her way back to her parents, that she didn't notice the elderly couple who had helped her following from a distance. They just wanted to keep an eye on her and make sure she found her parents safely…

Fortunately, that's exactly what Riley did!

After fifteen minutes of retracing her steps through the mall, Riley was finally reunited with her worried parents.

As she approached the _'Ho, Ho, Ho'_ entrance, Riley saw her Mom and Dad pacing anxiously in front of the optometrist. A huge smile of relief appeared on her face and Riley called out to them eagerly, dropping her "map" as she started running towards them.

Bill and Jill enveloped their daughter in a massive hug, their faces filled with immense relief when they saw that she was safe and sound.

"Oh Riley! You made me sick with worry!" Jill stuttered, tears rolling down her face as she held onto Riley tightly and kissed the top of her head lovingly.

Bill nodded in agreement. "If I didn't have a haircut earlier, my hair would be turning gray right now!"

He folded his arms over his chest and shook his head disapprovingly. "It's like I said this morning, shopping is too stressful! We need to go home and unwind…"

"But Dad! Even though I didn't get to buy everything I wanted, don't I at least deserve an ice cream after this traumatic ordeal?!" Riley asked innocently whilst flashing Bill her most irresistible look.

Bill opened his mouth to protest. But before he could say anything, Jill cut him off and responded enthusiastically, "I think we could all use some ice cream right now!"

She nudged Bill with her elbow and threw him a quick glance that seemed to say, _"Just keep quiet and be a good sport…"_

Then she looked back down at Riley and smiled reassuringly. "Let's all get a big serve of ice cream to help us calm down and finish this day on a joyful note!"

XXX

Up in Headquarters, Joy cheered and jumped from exhilaration as she watched Riley and her parents walking off towards the ice cream parlor.

"That's what I'm talking about! Every day should be finished on a joyful note!" She exclaimed exuberantly and twirled out of sheer delight.

Joy laughed and turned to the other Emotions with an enormous smile on her face. "Our girl is back with her parents and everything turned out well in the end! Are we all happy now?"

Fear's posture seemed relaxed for the first time since this morning. His eyes were no longer darting around the room nervously and his axon was curled up over his head calmly.

"Well, I'm relieved that Riley's safe at last!" He stated with a pleased grin.

Sadness gave a dreary sigh and echoed gloomily, "I agree with you Joy, everything turned out well in the end…"

Disgust looked a little disappointed and stood with her back to the console pouting.

"Well, I can't say that I'm _entirely_ happy. I would have liked to do a bit more shopping…" The green Emotion admitted with a glum expression.

"Oh please! I don't want to hear another word about shopping for a long time!" Anger protested irately. His fists were clenched and his head was beginning to simmer with rage as he added shopping to the long list of things that made his blood boil.

Joy however, was unperturbed by Anger's fiery outburst. Instead, she turned back to the monitor and her smile grew even wider as she declared cheerfully, "We did it guys! We make such an awesome team don't we…"

 **The End.**


End file.
